A very ordinary afternoon Pt: 1

Posted on Mon May 6th, 2019 @ 4:08am by Lieutenant Commander S'hib

Mission: Episode 1: Hell is a four letter word
Location: Security Offices
2828 words - 5.7 OF Standard Post Measure

Standing alone in the locker room of the security office S'hib slowly stripped off his upper uniform, the fabric rustling against his fur as he pulled the overall over his head. folding it neatly into a perfect square, the bright yellow collar on top and sleeves tucked in exactly as he was shown in the academy.

Placing it inside his locker S'hib shook his head furiously from side to side as he brushed down all his fur. ~Hate these clothes so much.~ He thought to himself as he removed the kilt like lower half of his uniform, leaving him bare, and placed it inside the locker.

"Much better," S'hib exclaimed as he enjoyed the momentary freedom his fur had as he reached for his exercise clothing.

Lifting one hoof up at a time as he slid his slender legs into body forming shorts, adjusting them briefly before turning around and lifting his right hoof up onto the bench that ran the length of the locker room.

Picking up a thick roll of white material S'hib began to wrap his lower legs up tightly, Wriggling his hooves afterward until he was happy the fit was good.

"One more thing." He said to himself with a slightly overdramatic pause as he reached around behind him and unbraided his tail until the thick coarse grey hair hung down the back of his legs with a happy swish before shutting the locker and trotting lightly to the next room, Picking up a fifty pound full tactical backpack and slinging it over one shoulder.

Noticing he was still alone S'hib clipped two small metal loops over his long protruding ears and slid the earbuds inside, upbeat and fast paced music filling his head as he slid his other arm into the backpack and fastened the straps across his bare chest.

"Computer, make a note of the time once I complete a full lap of the ship." S'hib said as he stretched one final time before picking up a phaser rifle he had taken from the armoury. "Clear?" he said as he opened the empty battery pack for the third time just to make sure the weapon was completely inoperable "Clear, let's go." He said to himself as he exited the office and began to gently jog down the hallway.

---

After around twenty minutes of running and a few strange looks, S'hib stopped at a cross section in the corridor and put the rifle against the wall before placing his hands on his legs, leaning down briefly to catch his breath and grab the chrome bottle of water from the side of his backpack.

"I heard a rumor about having a warhorse come aboard, but I didn't believe it", was Mona's first remark as she walked around the corner, wearing some baggy athletics gear and with her hair in a ponytail.

Glancing up suddenly and almost choking on his water S'hib raised back up to full height before pocketing the bottle. "Warhorse?" S'hib coughed as he swallowed. "What exactly have people been saying?" He added, removing his earbuds and only just realizing the crew would have been talking about him.

"Something about a cataract? No, that's not right... cataphract!" Mona said. "Yes, cataphract it was. Apparently humans used to armour their horses and ride into battle on them."

"Well hopefully nobody will be riding me into battle anytime soon." S'hib sighed as he stretched his arms above his head. "Anyway, you look like you're out for a run, wanna join me on another lap?"

"I'm not much of a runner", Mona said. "I was headed for the gym to see if I could find someone who enjoys a little hand-to-hand."

"I suppose I could deviate from my exercise routine, Lead the way." S'hib added curiously as he picked up the rifle, unaware he was about to get into a fight with a starfleet marine.

"That would be amazing", Mona smiled. She loved sparring against members of new species, at least new to her, because it gave her an opportunity to learn about their strengths and weaknesses, even if she tried to avoid close combat in favour of long-range engagements whenever possible.

"I haven't had a chance to meet everyone in my department yet, You aren't part of security are you?" S'hib asked curiously as they started walking for the nearest turbolift.

"No, I'm in what they're terming 'strategic defence' these days", Mona said. "It's where everyone gets grouped in who specialises in fighting away from the ship. My speciality is sharpshooting, much like Fernando, except he's also trained in ship security, while I specialise in anything planetside." She extended her hand. "I'm Mona Lott."

"S'hib" He said sternly, shaking her hand with a firm grip. "So you're a Marine." he said, both ears flicking slightly. "Can't say I've ever sparred with a green collar before." He said hiding his nerves.

"This should be interesting." He said as he carried on walking, quietly eyeing her up, trying to figure out if this was a fight he could win.

"I hope so", Mona said. "It'll be an education for me, at any rate. I've never seen a horse fight. I know to avoid kicks, but other than that?"

"If I told you how I fight, It wouldn't be much of a fight." S'hib quipped with a short but happy whine as they approached a turbolift.

"True. Thankfully we've got a good surgeon, so we can do the sparring matches in the afternoons", Mona grinned.

~Oh fuck.~ S'hib thought to himself as he entered the lift and turned around, slightly wishing he had brought his rifle with charged battery pack. "Hopefully it won't come to that." He replied, grinning back and hiding his nerves.

"There's always a chance", Mona shrugged.

"I'm sure it will go down wonderfully with our department heads." S'hib snorted as he couldn't help find the cliche prospect of a security officer and a marine getting into a full blown fight amusing. "Deck fifteen, gymnasium." He added as the doors shut and the turbolift began to move.

Mona leaned against the lift wall in her usual, maybe too casual way. "Well, they're both not here at the moment... though that'll hopefully change soon. They've got to stop with these abductions, we've already had one during our last mission."

"Yeah, I'd rather that not be a running theme to my new career." S'hib said wistfully as the doors opened to deck fifteen.

Mona took the lead, as she figured she was more familiar with the deck layout. "Though I got a few amazing pieces of jewellery out of the deal. Not that I usually wear any, but I might sport these occasionally."

"What did you do, beat them off of someone?" S'hib neighed happily as he followed Mona down the corridor.

"No, they were part of my disguise", Mona said. "Dr. Hertz hand-painted them for me." Entering the gym and approaching she cushioned area - Mona didn't want to take fall damage - she cracked her knuckles. "Okay, ground rule, no kicks to the head. Everything else is fair game. Are you okay with that?"

Placing the rifle against a wall S'hib turned to Mona. "If I kicked you in the head I'd probably kill you, so yes. I am very much okay with that." S'hib said as he unfastened the straps and let the backpack fall to the floor with a resounding heavy thud. "Just go easy on me, I'm a little out of breath." He added with a slight smirk.

"Don't worry", Mona said. She wasn't going to fight dirty, try to kick him under his kilt or something. That wouldn't be fun and he'd never come back for a rematch.

With a dancer's grace, Mona swooped in for the first charge, a probing blow intended to hit the side of his upper body, as Mona was planning on moving out off to the side. She did not want to go all-out in the first few minutes.

With the flick of an ear his natural fight or flight response kicked in heavily, and without thinking he used his powerful legs to propel himself into a dive to one side, Rolling across the floor several feet away and quickly getting back to his hooves.

The fight had begun faster than he expected, but now he was ready. Heart racing and nostril flaring. "You're quick." He added with a gruff exhale, flexing slightly into a defensive stance.

"The advantage of being small", Mona grinned. She came in with another probing attack, this time to see if her bare foot could knock his leg off balance.

Catching her foot with the side of his leg S'hib deflected the blow before skittering backward to maintain distance, his prey instincts alarming him to her probing, almost playful nature.

"Come on, fight back already", Mona teased. She waited, the next one was going to be his turn.

"If you insist." S'hib snorted as his hooves twisted into the padded mats as he darted forward surprisingly fast for his size, Bringing his right knee up towards her gut in a feint attack while jolting his left palm towards her right shoulder, hoping to use his sudden momentum to catch her off guard.

The blow to the shoulder connected sideways, mid-reaction, and glanced off. "That's better!" Mona encouraged. She began forming a strategy. His style seemed to be prolonged inactivity, accentuated by bouts of fast strikes. She'd have to keep him moving, tire him out a bit more, while carefully staying out of range of his hooves. She could already see that she'd stand no chance against him in a narrow corridor, but saw her opportunities with the wide-open space they were in.

"Last fight I had was with a Klingon and his knife." S'hib snorted, his tail flicking wildly as he kept moving around Mona, trying to keep her central to the room. "It didn't last as long as this sadly." He added with a slight shrug before stamping his hoof forward aggressively, looking for a response with his muzzle raised up curiously.

It was these aggressive moves that Mona attempted to exploit, hoping that he exposed himself in another capacity. But she didn't have time to think, she moved on instinct, staying close, not shying away from taking the occasional hit, so long as he couldn't get a grasp on her.

~She's a marine, I'll have to do better than that to scare her.~ S'hib thought to himself as he darted forward, If she wanted to stay close he'd happily oblige.

In an instant he closed the gap, keeping his large hooves stamping dangerously close to her feet as he swung a wide right hook while keeping his left arm close to deflect any retaliation.

Mona took a blow to the ribs which knocked some of the wind out of her. She got in a jab of her own before retreating to a bit of a distance to recover her breath. "Nice one."

Stretching his torso and rotating his left shoulder S'hib shrugged off the jab as he moved back himself. "Wasn't too hard was I?" He asked softly. Sparring with other security officers was one thing, but he was still unsure if she was joking about needing a visit to sickbay.

"Fight like you mean it", Mona said. "Otherwise, it's no good."

"Stop holding back then." S'hib snorted as he opened his arms either side of himself.

"Alright", Mona said. She figured that was fair on both sides. She came in low, this time she meant it, and put all her weight behind her fist, aimed for his thigh.

S'hib tried to move out the way but to no avail, the attack came in fast, and he thought that perhaps he had bitten off more than he could chew while bringing both fists down onto her shoulder, striking one another at the same time.

"Pointy little knuckles." S'hib whined as he hopped back slightly, a numbness going up to his hip.

Mona flexed her shoulder coming out. "Just be happy I keep my fingernails short."

"Oh, I know all about that" S'hib said casually as he tried to walk off the numbness. "Met a Caitian at a bar once back in the academy." He added as he scrapped his hoof across the floor rapidly, trying to increase blood flow.

"Too much hair", Mona said as she moved in again, this time from the other side. "But amazingly wild."

Seeing her trying to strike him in a similar fashion S'hib darted towards her, crouching low before leaping up high, bringing his legs up behind him as he shoved both hands into the back of her head and springboarding behind her, only to land awkwardly on his still numb leg. ~Damn it.~ He huffed, almost stumbling over.

Mona didn't waste time appreciating the artistic move, she struck out with a sideways kick of her green, bare foot. It would have been bad with a combat boot on, but like this eminently survivable.

Catching her heel in his hands S'hib avoided any serious harm but the blow still pushed him backward into a wall, stunning him slightly as he brought his arms up to defend what was coming next.

Mona had expected him to be much better in a close-quarter fight, but she hadn't taken into account that the way his legs were shaped, kicking forward wasn't going to happen. She'd found his weakness, and she was going to exploit it mercilessly. Her hands moved to distract, her feet did the real work, and she eventually kneed him in the stomach.

All the air left S'hib's lungs as he gasped wide eyed, The next few seconds became a blur and he almost didn't feel the next few strikes hit his body. ~I should have stayed on my run.~ He thought to himself as his body went into auto pilot, Both hands reaching out to the sides before quickly striking Mona on either side of the head, aiming for her ears.

Having her ears flicked was unpleasant but Mona didn't easy off until she'd secured victory, which she felt was close. Her head ducked out of the way and she smacked him on his soft upper lip in the hopes of disorienting him.

The blow knocked his head back into the wall, tasting and smelling blood fill his nose S'hib cried out in frustrated panic as he shoved his weight into her smaller frame, pushing away from the wall until he had enough space to bend his one good leg up against the flat surface and kick away forcefully, tackling Mona to the floor in desperation.

When Mona found herself on the floor, her head getting knocked to the ground grateful for the soft padding they were sparring on, she called out, "Stop!" Then, after briefly catching her breath, she added, "You're bleeding all over me!"

"That is entirely your fault." S'hib huffed, catching his breath before watching a droplet of crimson blood fall from his nose and onto her cheek.

Letting out a loud groan he sat up, lifting his head up high as he sat above Mona, bleeding over himself instead.

"You've put up a good fight", Mona said approvingly, sitting up and stretching. She started checking herself, wondering whether she'd need a doctor or just a rub-down with a soothing oil. "I realised too late I'd need to back you up against something because you can't kick me in the shins."

"Next time I'll stay away from the walls." S'hib winced, bringing an open palm up to his nose, unsure if blood was still running down his fur.

"You should go to sickbay", Mona said. "I only meant to disorient you."

"Don't worry about it." S'hib waved at Mona. "Lots of blood vessels, looks worse than it is." He added as he tried to get back onto his hooves.

Mona stood and offered him her hand. "Well, by all means, keep spreading it everywhere. It's not like I'm the one who has to clean it up."

Grabbing her hand he pulled himself up off of the floor, steadying himself as he felt the blood rush from his head slightly. "I'll have to get you back next time." He added with a bloody grin, The grey fur on his muzzle matting and staining red.

"Good luck - you're going to need it", Mona quipped.

"I need a drink, that's what I need." S'hib groaned as he limped slowly over to his bag and rifle. "You could get me one at some point to make up for this." He added, turning around and pointing at his face.

"Meet me in the arboretum after alpha shift tomorrow", Mona suggested.

"Alpha shift, Gotcha." S'hib slurred slightly as he shouldered his bag and grabbed the rifle. "I'm gonna go to sickbay now I think, so I'll see you tomorrow." He added, limping towards the exit, leaving a small trail of droplets behind him.